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NBA Picks

Take the Home Team with Your NBA Picks in Tonight's Bucks vs. Bulls Game 6

Can the Chicago Bulls finally close out the series with the Milwaukee Bucks in game 6? With NBA odds in full swing, here's our preview complete with NBA picks.

Series Heats Up As Bucks Close Gap
All of a sudden, the first round series with the Milwaukee Bucks isn't so straightforward. After racing to a 3-0 lead, the Bulls have enjoyed a bit of a comeuppance as the Bucks defied the NBA odds to win back-to-back games and get within one of levelling the series. Can the Bulls stem the tide, or will the Bucks do the unthinkable tonight with home advantage and send this series into game 7?

Chicago Bulls (3-2, 1-1 away)
After racing to a 3-0 lead, the Bulls clearly dropped the ball in Games 4 and 5. Whether it was because they took their overwhelming lead for granted or simply underestimated the Bucks entirely is neither here nor there anymore. Fact is this series is heating up. Put on their heels so, they are in danger of facing a series-deciding game 7 if they don't get the job done on Thursday night, at which point it would be theoretically anybody's series for the taking.

No team has come back to win a series after losing the first three games, which is a measure of comfort for the Bulls. Certainly, they don't want to go down in history as the first team to allow that to happen. However, letting the last two games go in favour of the Bucks is a cause for concern. Whether they can stem the tide of momentum going against them is a valid question.

Odds makers, however, don't appear to be concerned about the turn of events. They send the Bulls into game 6 as the firm favourites on the road, matched at -170 NBA odds to win outright. They are also favoured at 3.5-points against the spread. NBA bettors have to wonder whether this market stance is a true assessment of the series or whether this is just a residual impression of the measure of each team based on their regular season accounts.

Milwaukee Bucks (2-3, 1-1 home)
The Bucks are riding the crest of a wave of confidence all of a sudden into game 6, after winning back-to-back games against all the odds. In game 5, the Bucks were matched as the massive +325 underdogs to win straight up and the 8-point pups against the spread. Tale told, they came through on both scores in the 94-88 win on the road.

Despite the lack of confidence, it's worth noting that the NBA odds for game 6 aren't as hefty as their opening NBA odds in game 4 for example, when they were matched as the +175 home underdogs or thereabouts depending on your sportsbook of choice. Of course, at the time, they were facing elimination, which is a whole different kettle of fish. That said, they are still facing elimination in game 6. So to be slightly better priced than they were before is a sign that the odds makers have taken stock of their momentum.

NBA Betting Verdict:
The Chicago Bulls have lost the plot in this series and are in very real danger of having to battle it out in game 7. The Bucks look to have all the momentum right now, the confidence they can hang with the Bulls and go toe-to-toe. What's more, they have home advantage for Thursday's game 6, which could prove deciding.

On paper, the Bulls appear to be the better bet for your NBA picks. That said, it's hard to ignore what the Bucks have done in order to make this a competitive series. It wouldn't shock us if they do come through as the home underdogs at +150 to send this into a game 7.